Surrey Police target travelling criminals in week of action

An operation joined by Surrey Police to combat foreign nationals using the country's roads to commit crime, has been hailed a success.

The Force took part in a week of action in the county. Officers stopped more than 100 vehicles in support of Op Trivium 2, which was aimed at catching travelling criminals who use the road network to avoid detection and move around the UK.

The operation was led by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and involved all UK police forces, as well as several national and international agencies.

The Force's Roads Policing Unit carried out stop-checks on vehicles at a number of locations, and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology was used to gather intelligence as part of the campaign.

As a result, in Surrey, two vehicles were seized, six arrests were made and a total of 15 penalties were issued.

Officers who carried out a vehicle check on a low-loader at Cobham services on the M25 discovered a stolen CAT excavator machine worth around £100,000, which had been fitted with false plates.

A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods.

A Surrey Police spokesman said enquiries are continuing.

Surrey Police's head of roads policing, Inspector Richard Mallett, said: "The county is home to one of the busiest stretches of motorway in Europe, and criminal gangs are increasingly using our roads to move around.” Insp Mallett said: "This operation sought to support the national campaign in disrupting such activity by carrying out stop-checks on vehicles and gathering intelligence over the week. “This type of action shows we remain determined to make the motorways and roads of Surrey a hostile place for criminals.”